Plastic bags to store frozen human plasma have been employed by blood collection centers, hospitals and other medical facilities for many years. These bags of frozen plasma are stored until they are ready for use. The plasma is generally thawed in a water bath prior to transfusion.
Plastic bags used for this purpose typically comprise two sheets of heavy plastic which have been sealed together at their edges. At the top edge of the bag there is a flap formed by the two sheets being sealed together. Typically there are entry ports or openings at the top of the bag which communicate with the interior cavity of the bag. There are normally at least two support holes at the top of the plasma bag which would allow the bag to be suspended by the plasma bag support rack hooks.
During the thawing process it is essential that the entry port openings at the top of the bag do not come in contact with the water in the water bath. This is due to the frequent contamination of the water bags with pathogenic bacteria. It has been documented in medical literature that if the entry ports come into contact with the contaminated water, the patient can still become infected even after the entry ports have been dried with clean gauze.
To minimize the possibility of contamination of the entry ports of the plasma bag with bacteria laden water, plasma overwrap bags are commonly used. Overwrap bags are made of thin plastic and are designed to place frozen plasma bags into during thawing. These bags have their problems, however, as they delay the thawing process and they also frequently leak allowing contamination to occur.
Some water baths come equipped with metal baskets which support the bottom and the sides of the plasma bag, but not the top of the bag. As a result the entry ports of the plasma bag can fold over and come in contact with the contaminated water.
There has not heretofore been provided a plasma bag support system having the advantages inherent in the system of the present invention.